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COVID-19 and Indonesia: 12 years of progress threatened

For more than 250 million people around the world, the numbers don’t lie: There will indeed be a PRE COVID-19 world and a POST COVID-19 world. In the current state of affairs, Indonesia, like many other countries, is grappling with an idle youth, growing inequalities in education and a future strewn with often insurmountable obstacles for women wishing to access real economic opportunities.

It is in this world that Dea Augustin evolves. She is a 13-year-old orphan that Talitha Koumi and Kusuma Bongas have taken under their wing. She lives with her grandmother and they are among the poorest of the poor who earn an average of $ 1.90 per day. The world is currently hit by a perfect storm made up of the trio COVID, armed conflict and climate change. These 3 phenomena combined will plunge 99 million more people into extreme poverty.

As for today, there are around 257 million people making $ 3.20 per day. Of this number, the 15-24 age group in Indonesia is hit hard. But there are major differences between the less fortunate in rural areas, undereducated and resigned to their fate, and young people in the suburbs. They are more educated, more urbanized and much less inclined to agricultural work in rice fields, for example. As they are more aware of those going on around them, this segment of the population may not accept being sidelined so easily and always suffer the consequences of decisions not emanating from their control.

Currently, Talitha Koumi is able to support Dea (as well as 13 other young girls) in the pursuit of her studies. She is currently in junior high school and her dream is to become a doctor. As the graph illustrates, the situation of extrême poverty in Asia was improving continuously since the 2008 stock market crash, but the current pandemic has distorted all the cards.

Economists use the GINI index to assess the distribution of wealth in a population. The greater this index, the greater the inequalities. Since March 2020, this index has continued to increase and Asia is the first affected region, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa.

Concretely, if we combine the GINI index with the fact that 25% of the Indonesian population has not worked since March, the country (and the countries of South Asia) is heading towards an unparalleled human catastrophe despite all the measures implemented. up by the Indonesian government.

Anyone who says growing inequalities means growing human trafficking. The traffickers rely on the fragility and distress of potential victims in order to trap them in their nets. In these moments, many parents see in their daughter only a way out of extreme poverty and many young girls, orphans or abandoned by their families, have no choice but to sell their bodies in order to have a place to stay and eat.

Talitha Koumi has been working for more than 3 years in the Indramayu district, the cradle of prostitution in Indonesia (to access our report on this subject, click HERE). When we know that barely 20 years ago, there was no electricity, no running water and no paved road in the village of Bongas, it would be illusory to believe that Dea’s situation will improve like no other. magic.

Economists use the GINI index to assess the distribution of wealth in a population. The greater this index, the greater the inequalities. Since March 2020, this index has continued to increase and Asia is the first affected region, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa.

Concretely, if we combine the GINI index with the fact that 25% of the Indonesian population has not worked since March, the country (and the countries of South Asia) is heading towards an unparalleled human catastrophe despite all the measures implemented. up by the Indonesian government.

Anyone who says growing inequalities means growing human trafficking. The traffickers rely on the fragility and distress of potential victims in order to trap them in their nets. In these moments, many parents see in their daughter only a way out of extreme poverty and many young girls, orphans or abandoned by their families, have no choice but to sell their bodies in order to ” have a place to stay and eat.

Talitha Koumi has been working for more than 3 years in the Indramayu district, the cradle of prostitution in Indonesia (to access our report on this subject, click HERE). When we know that barely 20 years ago, there was no electricity, no running water and no paved road in the village of Bongas, it would be illusory to believe that Dea’s situation will improve like magic.

rue-bongas

Une typique du village de Bongas, district d’Indramayu, Java Ouest

It is inevitable that a serious economic crisis hits the entire planet because of the drastic measures that had to be taken, or not, to curb the pandemic. Obviously, the various solutions are not producing the expected results, the WORLDOMETER site (link) had 54,724,085 people infected with more than 1.3 million deaths. Never has a health crisis had such a big impact and apart from a hypothetical vaccine that has been eagerly awaited, there is no indication that the horse remedies applied by governments are not causing more problems than the disease itself.

For Dea and her little sister to have a realistic hope of getting through this, NGOs like Talitha Koumi and Yayasan Kusuma Bongas must be able to continue their work. As unrealistic as it sounds to a Canadian or an American, many Indonesian workers cannot work from home either because the Internet is not accessible or because their livelihood does not allow working from home.

Let’s face it, tough times are looming ahead. This pandemic will concretely drag a minimum of 100 million new people into extreme poverty, the life expectancy and quality of life of hundreds of millions of people will be affected and South Asia will be one of the most affected regions.

That’s why Talitha Koumi needs you more than ever. There are 300,000 women victims of prostitution and 90,000 of them are minors. They could be your daughters or your neighbors.

Talitha Koumi’s mission has two components: a) Prevention, one of the means of which is keeping young girls in school and b) social reintegration consisting of assisting young prostitutes wishing to get out of the clutches of prostitution.

To help Talitha Koumi:

Together we are making a difference. Are you going to engage in combat with us?

Daniel Jean

CEO and founder of Talitha Koumi

 

 

 

References for this post

How COVID-19 Will Increase Inequality in Emerging Markets and Developing Economies

How COVID-19 Will Increase Inequality in Emerging Markets and Developing Economies

The impact of COVID-19 on global poverty under worsening growth and inequality

https://blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/impact-covid-19-global-poverty-under-worsening-growth-and-inequality

https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/34451/September-2020-PovcalNet-Update-What-s-New.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Poverty and shared prosperity

http://pubdocs.worldbank.org/en/963481563917599502/mpo-idn.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

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